Forever Summer
by MilesAway-Outsiders
Summary: Eleanor Matthews has always watched her brothers friends in awe. She's never been a part of their group but has always yearned to be accepted into their group. As she grew older the yearning died down, that is until she re-connects with Ponyboy Curtis, who is about to give her the summer a sixteen year old girl will always remember. Set after the book, Ponyboy/OC
1. Chapter 1

I smile, tucking a loose hair behind my ear and playfully glaring at my older brother. At twenty three he is still the most goofiest immature person in the world, but that's why I love him. "Now don't go and smash my face in the cake like you did last year." I say and he grins.

"And the year before that." My best friend Mindy adds before she blows a party horn in his face.

"And the year before that." My mom says with a smile as she begins to light my candles.

"I would never ruin my sister's sixteenth birthday that way. I'm appalled that you think I would ever do such a thing." Two-Bit says and I eye him cooly.

I tilt my head and cock my brow up in a very Two-Bit fashion and he laughs. "Kid your actin' more and more like me everyday."

"Oh lord don't say that to me again." I say and Two-Bit pushes me in my chair. There's a brief moment of panic for me because I had been tilting the chair back on two legs, luckily I don't fall with the push but I swear I saw my life flash before my eyes.

"What, you don't want to be like your older brother?" He asks and I crinkle my nose.

"If it means I'm twenty-three and still living in mama's house than no thank you." I say and Two-Bit shakes his head, a grin playing on his lips.

"Mama you gonna let her talk to me like that?" Two-Bit asks and my mom smiles at him before turning off the lights so my birthday candles are the only thing projecting a golden glow in the dining room.

"Eleanor be nice to your brother." She reprimands and I smile sweetly at here, "Now hush up and start singing or the candles are going to melt all over the cake." My mom continues and Two-Bit begins to lead my mom and Mindy in a very humorous round of happy birthday.

When the song ends I take a deep breath and blow out all sixteen candles. My birthday always kicks off the beginning of the summer and this year I want it to be the best summer yet. So that's what I wish for. The very best summer of my life

"What did you wish for?" Two-Bit asks as he pulls three of the brightly colored candles out of my cake to lick off the frosting.

"For you to move out, get a job, and shave those caterpillars off the side of your face." I say with a grin as I point to his sideburns causing him to smirk.

"Well now that you told me it won't come true." He says and I roll my eyes.

"Too bad, I was looking forward to the day I'd get your bedroom but it looks like that day is never going to come." I say and Two-Bit shakes his head.

"Kid, if I ever moved out you would miss me so much that I'd just have to come back." Two-Bit replies and I laugh at him.

"Don't count on that." I say before affectionately punching his shoulder. He's probably right though. I would miss him, but I'd get over it.

"You've got a little something right here." Two-Bit says and I lean away from him.

"Oh no, I'm not falling for that." I say because I know he's trying to smash my face into the cake.

"Getting too smart for me little sister." Two-Bit says and I smile at him before taking my first bite of cake.

"Here," Mindy says as she slides me an envelope and a flat wrapped present. I can tell instantly that she probably got me the new Beatles record and I smile at her. "My mom's going to be here soon. I got church tomorrow, but I just wanted to make sure you opened this while I was here."

My brother chokes a little next to me and I elbow him in the ribs. Even though Mindy is the preacher's daughter and came from a middle class family she was still my very best friend in the entire world.

"What is church?" My brother says and I roll my eyes at him.

"Knock it off Two." I say and he laughs. "So Mindy's family goes to church it's not a big deal."

"I'm not saying anythings wrong with going to church, but if anyone in our family went we'd probably burst into flames the second we walked in through the door." Two-Bit says and Mindy laughs.

"That's okay, we'd just have to extinguish you with the holy water." Mindy replies and Two-Bit tips his beer to her. He could appreciate anyone that could joke around with him.

"You know what I forgot to do?" Two-Bit says and I look over at him, instantly regretting it when a piece of cake is instantly smashed into my face.

"Two-Bit!" I yell as I wipe the frosting off my face and wipe it on his. It becomes a full on brawl between my brother and I, trying to get frosting on each other's face. My brother knocks a plate off the table and it shatters on the floor. It's like the bell that ends a fight because my brother and I stop instantly, sitting straight back and waiting for our mama to yell at us.

"All I want is to celebrate one birthday where no one gets cake in the face and nothing gets broken. One birthday." My mom grumbles as she takes the plates from us and then hits him in the back of the head with a dishrag.

"Clean yourselves up." She commands and Two-Bit and I race for the bathroom. I get there first but he pushes me into the bathtub and I throw a wet washcloth at him.

He just laughs and wipes his face with it. I climb out of the bathtub and stand next to him in front of the mirror. "It's strange to think you're not a little girl anymore."

"What are you talking about Two? Turning sixteen doesn't make me an adult and I don't look any different from yesterday when I was fifteen." I say and Two-Bit nudges me with his elbow.

"I don't know Eleanor." Two-Bit says as we both stare at our reflections in the mirror. "I think this summers going to be a big change for you."

We stay like that in the mirror long enough for me to study our reflections. Both my brother and I have the same blue eyes as our mom and the dirty blonde hair, but Two's seems to be more brown because of the hair grease. We don't really look alike other than those traits. Two-Bit has a tougher face than me and I know its because he's seen and experienced more than I could ever really imagine. My face is innocent, fresh, and in all honesty I feel as if I look like I'm younger than what I really am.

I have filled out a lot though. My body is beginning to curve like a woman's body should and I've been growing my hair out past my shoulders. I'm told I'm beautiful, but I don't feel like I am. I can't look at myself and find the beauty that others seem to see. I still feel like the gangly and awkward adolescent.

"I hope this sum-" I begin to say but Two-Bit covers my mouth with his hand. It smells like his cheap cologne, cigarettes, and beer. The way he's smelt since he was fifteen. It's a comforting smell for me and I meet his eyes in the mirror.

"Don't tell me your wish, or it won't come true." He says before smiling one if his genuine soft smiles that isn't meant to be funny or teasing but actually one that's meant to show that he cares. It's rare to see them.

I nod my head and he removes his hand from my face. Two-Bit is the only father figure I've ever known. He's the one that taught me how to ride a bike, made sure I got to and from school alright, and pretty much did absolutely anything to make sure that I was happy growing up.

"You're going to teach me how to drive right?" I ask and Two-Bit freezes in the hallway looking at me.

"Maybe El, but my car's in the shop the brakes blew out again. Just hold tight for awhile ok?" Two-Bit says and I try not to look disappointed.

"Oh, oh well ok." I say and Two-Bit smiles, and drapes an arm over my shoulders.

"Aw, come on kid smile. It's not everyday you turn sixteen so smile, and besides we have the entire summer for you to learn how to drive." Two-Bit says as we walk back down the hallway, both of us teasing each other with each step we take together.

After Mindy goes home, my mom goes to bed, and Two-Bit leaves to hang out with his buddies I find myself climbing out my bedroom window to lay in the vacant lot to watch the stars.

When I was twelve Two-Bit had a friend with big black eyes and a scar on his cheek, his name was Johnny and I remember him being my favorite out of the group because he didn't treat me like a child. I remember him vividly because I had ran away onetime after my mom had made me upset and Two-Bit wasn't taking my side. I slipped out my bedroom window, much like I had tonight, and decided I would live in the vacant lot. I wasn't too smart when I was twelve, because I was freezing and scared of the dark and by the time I had made it to the lot I was already in tears.

It wasn't my brother who found me there that night, it was Johnny. He had already been there and when he heard me crying so he got up from wherever he was sleeping and sat next to me in the tall dry grass. He knew who I was because the weekend before that night Two-Bit had brought me over to the Curtis' to do my homework because he had wanted to hang out with my buddies but hadn't wanted to leave me home alone.

"What's wrong?" Johnny had asked me when I sniffled again and wipes my eyes with my sleeve.

"I'm running away." I stated and Johnny had smiled at little at me, "I am, I'm going to leave and no one will ever find me."

"Well why would you wanna do that?" He asked and I crossed my arms over my chest.

"No one at my house appreciates me." I told him and Johnny actually laughed at me.

"Your family loves you though, I know Two-Bit would loose his mind if something ever happened to you." Johnny said quietly and I shrugged my shoulders.

"They don't act like it." I said stubbornly before shivering from the cold.

"Look at you, trying to run away without a jacket or any money. You won't make it two miles." Johnny said as he shrugged off his jean jacket and put it on my shoulders. "We should get you home before you catch a cold."

"I'm not going back." I said again and Johnny shook his head looking down at my feet that only had slippers on.

"You know sometimes people do the things or say things because they love a person and they want to keep them safe. I'm sure whatever they said that made you so upset they really didn't mean to hurt you." Johnny said and I could feel myself growing less angry and stubborn with each word.

"Why does family have to be so hard to get along with?" I asked Johnny and he shrugged his shoulders, getting up and then reaching his hand down to help me up.

"I don't think I'm the best person to ask that." Johnny had answerd and I nodded my head because I knew Johnny didn't have the best home life. "But you know the vacant lot is the best place to come to when you just need a little time to yourself."

I nodded my head and smiled as I looked up to him. He walked me home after that and I didn't talk to him again because he got into some trouble and died not even two weeks later. I remember his funeral even more vividly than that night. I had cried into my brother's sleeve, not because seeing my brother and his friends cry scared me, but because I would miss how kind he was. Two-Bit always said he was glue that held the gang together and after that night I could understand why.

As I sit in the vacant lot now and look up at the stars I really understood what Johnny had meant when we sat together in the lot four years ago. The vacant lot was a good place to just escape to because you didn't have to impress anyone there and you could just sit here and watch the stars or the leaves in the tree rustle from the wind. It's always calm here in the lot and I could understand why Johnny had spent most of his free time here, you could think about anything and worry about nothing.

I lay backwards into the dry grass and shiver slightly as the summer breeze wraps around me. The sky up ahead is clear and there's about one million stars are in the navy blue sky tonight. I try to count them but my mind drifts off into the upcoming summer.

I usually spend them all the same way every year. My summers are boring and long and Mindy and I usually just stick around our houses watching TV or reading books. I wanted this summer to be different, needed this summer to be different. I was going to have to make it different myself, go to parties, hang out with people who weren't Mindy. She of course would be there too because I couldn't just abandon my best friend.

I was tired of waiting for something to happen to me. I was going to get something to happen myself.

My wish will come true. I would make sure of it. I would have the summer teenage girls dream about.


	2. Chapter 2

I can hear my brother and his buddies playing football from my spot on the porch swing. Mindy and our other two good friends, Emily and Polly, are sipping on some freshly squeezed lemonade and nibbling on some sugar cookies my mom had made last night. The boys are all yelling at each other and their laughs drift over here with the warm summer breeze. I lean back in the swing while listening to them.

When I was younger I used to want to be apart of their gang. I admired their friendships and wanted nothing more to be a part of it. Two-Bit would always tell me to quit trying to tag-along but I always tried to get him to take me with them all the time. It finally got to the point where Two-Bit got so annoyed with me that he let me join their football game, he must've told the boys to treat me like the rest of them because when I finally caught the ball Steve made sure to push me hard into the mud. I broke my finger and cried out of embarrassment and pain. Two-Bit felt so bad afterwards and always made sure to invite me to the things they were going to that I could tag-along on. I never wanted to after that day though, I never wanted to show my face to those boys again.

"Elle?" Polly says before tossing half of a cookie at me. It lands in my lap after hitting me in the chest and I look up at her, tilting my head.

"What?" I ask and the girls laugh.

"I was asking if you wanted to go to the party at Bryan and Mark house?" Polly says before twirling her finger around one of her dark brown ringlets.

"Are we even invited? They're like seniors." I say and Polly rolls her eyes.

"They're not even seniors they just graduated. Or at least I think they graduated." Emily says and her eyes widen a bit, "Incoming Curtis."

I glance over my shoulder and smile a little when I see Sodapop Curtis. He's got a cane, sling for his left arm, and a bandage over his right eye. All of it wounds from the war, he spent three years there and came home a few months ago because of being injured. I remember Soda being really handsome when he left and while he still is even with his injuries, there's something different about him. According to Two-Bit, Soda just is having a hard time adjusting back, but sometimes he's like his old self. It doesn't happen a lot, but Two-Bit keeps telling me the old Soda is in there somewhere. I know my brother is trying to assure himself more than me because Soda's his friend, but I still listen anyways because Soda's always been one of my brothers good buddies. I worry about them all as much as I worry about my own brother.

"Hey Sodapop." I say and he smiles at me. "What's up?"

"Hey there Eleanor, ladies." He says as he hobbles up the porch steps. I don't make any move to help him up because Two-Bit told me he's touchy about people hovering around him and trying to do everything for him. I just scoot over on the porch swing so he can sit next to me, "I got bored watching them play football, it's also real hot out there. Two-Bit told me that you guys had made some fresh lemonade so I thought I'd come have some."

"Yeah, I'll get a glass for you." I say before getting up. When I walk in through the door I hear Mindy ask if he wants a cookie too.

My house is just as hot as it is outside and before I bring Soda out a glass for him I flip my hair up into a messy bun. A few pieces fall loose but I'm not too worried because I didn't need to impress Sodapop, he's twenty-one and most likely still thought of me as a little kid. Not that I minded, Sodapop is a doll but I couldn't think of him like that.

"Thanks Little-Bit." Soda says with a small teasing smile and I glare at him for using the horrendous nickname I acquired from bring Two-Bit's little sister. I don't know who exactly started calling me that, but I'm about 99% sure that it was my brother.

"What were you girls gossiping about anyways?" He asks before pouring some of the lemonade into his glass.

"The party at Bryan and Marks house." Emily says stupidly before her eyes widen because she realizes that she probably shouldn't have told him that. The girls know that the gang looks out for each other, families included. I would be worried if it was anyone else, but I knew Soda would keep the secret. He was wild and reckless once too.

"Oh yeah, Ponyboy was talking about going to that tonight." Soda says and Polly perks up a bit.

"Did you hear that Polly? Ponyboy's going to be there." Mindy says with a teasing grin on her face and Polly tries her best to fight the blush off her face.

"It's not like we're going anyways." Polly says through gritted teeth as she glances at Soda.

He smiles a bit because he knows that they think that he's going to say something. "I heard that their parties were pretty cool." He says and I smile at him.

"Soda's a good secret keeper, Two-Bit always swears by it." I say and he beams somewhat proudly

As we talk about the party tonight, Soda just sits there on our porch swing. I can tell he's only half listening to us and I can't help but wonder why he's exactly here. I figure it's because my house is closer to the lot, but why not just go home? I didn't think a twenty-one year old would want to hang out with his buddies sixteen year old sister and her friends.

"So it's decided, we meet back at my house at ten." Polly, who pretty much the ring leader for trouble in our little group of friends, says with a wicked grin.

The girls then clear out because my brother and his buddies are starting to make their way down the road. I would have left with them but I told my mom I would do some of my summer homework today. Whenever my brother lets his friends come over I become the butt of their jokes and so do my friends. It's annoying and I stand up to go hide out in my room but Soda stops me.

"I'll promise not to tell Two-Bit about tonight, if you promise me one thing." Soda says and I lift a brow at him. "Stay close to my brother, I've heard how parties there can get and I don't want to see you in some situation."

"Don't worry about me Soda. I mean you guys never have before." I say and he frowns. The eye that's not covered by the bandage darkens a bit.

"Course we have." Soda says and I know that it's true to a point. Even though I'm not part of their little gang all of them still looked out for me because of whose little sister I am. I'm a selective little sister for all of them. They ignore me when hey want to, but look after me when they have to. I'm almost sure I'm just a big bother when they feel like they have to look out for me.

"I'll be fine Sodapop. It's not like Pony's going to want to babysit me anyways." I say and Soda swings a bit in the porch swing, the chains groaning at the movement.

"He'll keep an eye out for you if I tell him too, besides all I'm asking is that you to stick close to him, not hang out with him." Soda says and I sigh, knowing that Ponyboy's probably going to look out for me anyways, it's a natural reaction for them. I roll my eyes a little at him, but know I have to agree if I want to go tonight.

"Alright Soda." I say before ducking into the house before my brother could ask what we're talking about.

I successfully managed to talk my mom into letting me spend the night at Polly's. Since she only lives a few blocks away from me and her parents never question what she's doing it's the perfect cover up to go to the party. Mindy had already called me earlier to tell me that she wasn't going to go and she almost talked me out of going.

"It's just going to be a bunch of boozed up teenagers." Mindy said with a hint of disgust in her voice, "I also heard that their parties can get out of hand, there was a fight one time and some boy ended up in the hospital."

"It'll be fine, what's the worse that's going to happen?" I asked her and she sighed. I could picture her face in my head at that very moment, she was most likely scowling like her mother and chewing on her bottom lip.

"You could end up in the hospital." She said like it was the most obvious answer and I couldn't help but laugh because it was the only reaction that could come to my mind.

"Look I promise if things get crazy I'll get out of there." I told her and she sighed again.

"Just don't drink and if your brother comes around tomorrow asking about where you disappeared to because you never came home I'm spilling the beans." Mindy said, but I could hear the humor in her voice.

"Alright mom." I answered, trying to lighten the mood and it worked because she laughed.

"Just be careful." Mindy told me, before hanging up the phone, she added "Oh and I want full details tomorrow."

The walk from my house to Polly's isn't long, but my brother came with me because you have to pass the Curtis house on the way. He gabs to me about some party at Buck Merrill's place he's going to and I only half listen to him. "What are you and Polly gonna do tonight?"

"You know, the usual." I answer and he nods his head, walking with a big old goofy grin on his face. He doesn't suspect a thing, which is exactly how it should be.

The Curtis household is busy as usual and I roll my eyes at how childish they still are after all of this time. Darry Curtis' long time girlfriend is sitting on the porch with a book in her hand. She's looking like she's trying to ignore the chaos that's going on inside and when she sees Two-Bit walking up the porch she looks like she might quit.

"I swear to god Two-Bit if you break anything this time." She warns and Two-Bit puts his hands up in mock surrender.

"I ain't gonna do nothing, just picking up Steve and we'll be out of your hair." Two-Bit says and she nods her head curtly, still scowling

I wave to them from the the sidewalk. I didn't really know Darry's girlfriend all to much. I believe they started dating about a year ago after Darry started taking classes at the community college, but I'm not too sure. She waves back at me and then goes back to her book while my brother belts out, "Bye baby sister."

"Don't be so obnoxious." I tell him before continuing on my way to Polly's.

Polly lives in a small little house at the end of the street. Her parents work almost all the time, giving her and her siblings almost all the freedom in the world. I don't bother to knock on the door, I just walk right inside and find Emily and Polly in the living room eating a big bowl of popcorn.

"Hey!" Polly calls and I smile dropping my bag by the couch before plopping down in the seat. "Where the hell is Mindy?"

"She doesn't want to come." I say and Polly rolls her eyes.

"Oh what a shocker." She says sarcastically and Emily laughs. I don't because Mindy is my very best friend and if she doesn't want to come then she doesn't want to come. No big deal.

As we're getting ready I start to feel a little nervous. This was a big party and while I was sure that it didn't matter that we were going I knew that something was going to get out of hand. "Let's make a pact." I say and the girls look over at me.

"No getting crazy tonight." I say and Polly rolls her eyes and then Emily joins in.

"Not making a pact like that." Poly says and Emily nods her head in agreement.

"Well I'm not babysitting you two." I counter and Polly smiles wickedly.

"I don't need you to." She answers before we finish getting ready. Compared to what their wearing I look like a damn nun.

"You look like you're joining a brothel." Emily says and I laugh.

"No you look like you're joining a brothel. The word your looking for is covent." I say and Emily waves it off with a flick of her hand.

"Whatever same thing." She says and I laugh even harder.

"No Em, a brothel is where-" I begin to say but Polly cuts me off.

"Not a big deal, what is going to be a big deal is that I'm going to try to hook up with Curtis tonight." Polly says and I flinch internally.

"Ponyboy." I state because I'm not used to people calling him Curtis. "And I don't think he does stuff like that."

"Well, he'll be drunk, I'll be drunk. No big deal." Polly says and I almost point out to her that I know for a fact that Ponyboy Curtis does not drink. Sure he's had a few beers, but he's never been rip-roaring drunk like my brother.

I know this because Ponyboy has brought him home after they've gone to some party together countless number of times and he's just been buzzed, never drunk. I don't tell Polly this because I want her to make a fool out of herself. She sometimes think that she's just so high and mighty all the time that someone's got to knock her down a peg or two and since I can't do it all the time, better let Ponyboy do it without him realizing it.

The house is crowded and the music is loud. The second we walk in I already know that I won't be having any fun. This isn't my scene and I know that I wanted to have the best summer ever, but this was not how I'm going to achieve it. I could leave but I didn't want to leave Polly and Emily alone. I know I said I wasn't going to be their babysitter's but rather I want to or not it's my job to make sure they don't do anything incredibly stupid.

I decide to watch them from a distance at they talk up Mark Jennings and Bryan Douglas. The two seem to be loving the attention because I'm sure they consider my two friends easy. It's no secret that Polly and Emily aren't virgins, they spread that around the schools themselves, but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with the fact that the two girls I had been friends with since kindergarten are becoming your typical Greaser girl.

I tuck a loose piece of hair behind my ear and sit on the couch. It smells like alcohol and sweaty bodies and I realize that I hate everything about parties.

After an hour of sitting on the couch and counting the amount of rings that have been left by people's drinks on the coffee table, there's 98 give or take a few, I scan the room and realize that the crowd has parted. Two big guys stand in the middle and are takin swings at each other. I watch for a few moments before I recognize Curly Shepard and I assume the other is from the Tiber Street Tigers. The two gangs have had it out for each other for the past year.

The Tiger pulls out a switch blade and I stand up. A hand grabs my arm and I look up to find Ponyboy completely forgetting that he was looking out for me tonight. He smells like beer but it isn't overwhelming, he pulls me away from the fight just as Curly Shepard takes out his own blade.

I can't help but feel a little nervous at his touch. He's so handsome and I know he's one of those boys that doesn't realize how good looking he is. "I've been looking for you everywhere!" He yells over the loud music and I furrow my brows in question.

"Why?" I ask as he pulls me out the front door.

"Your brother's here." Ponyboy says when we get outside. It's a lot quieter out here and he doesn't have to yell. "Him and Steve got here like a half hour ago."

"Thanks, for the warning." I say as I look back at the house, "I can't leave without my friends though."

Ponyboy begins to say something else, but two cop cars start to make their way down the street. He swears and sticks his head back inside. "Cops!" He tells and I start to tell him that the music is too loud but people begin to pile out real fast.

"Come on." He says before grabbing my arm again and pulling me around the side of the house so that we can get out of here the back way.

When I look back I see Polly giving me the dirtiest of looks. I had almost forgotten the some sort of claim she put on Ponyboy earlier that night. I pause, and he tugs me. "Come on, unless you want the cops to get you."

"Or worse my brother." I say and he smirks at me.

"I can't see Two-Bit being the scary older brother." Pony says as he pulls me around to the back yard and then boosts me over the fence.

He jumps over the fence with ease and then grabs my arm again. He pulls me through people's backyards and alleys until we get to the main road. "You going home?"

"No, I'm staying the night at Polly's." I say and he nods.

"I'll walk you. Soda and Two-Bit will both skin me if they find out I left you on the street in the middle of the night." Ponyboy says and I smile at him. I had forgotten how sweet he was.


	3. Chapter 3

"What were you doing at that party anyways? I didn't think you were into that stuff. Your brother's always talking about how much of a good kid you are." Pony asks as we walk down the dark streets of our neighborhood. There's not a soul out except for us and I wonder if everyone got out, I'm especially worried about Polly and Emily.

"My friends wanted to go and I was curious." I say and Ponyboy smiles at my answer.

"Mark and Bryan's parties aren't the kind of place you want to be caught up at though." He says and I glance at him. I can't tell if he's trying to play the big brother card that Soda pulled on me earlier.

"I don't need a babysitter," I tell him and and smirks at me, "and if their parties are so bad why were you there? Two-Bit always swears that your the best out of you little gang of friends."

"Mark and Bryan are my buddies and besides you can't be more than what, fifteen?" He asks and I keep my eyes downcast on my shoes, he is playing the big brother card.

"Sixteen, well barely sixteen. We're pretty much two years apart. My birthday's June 6th and yours is July 22nd." I say and Pony looks at me with a laugh.

"You know my birthday?" He asks and I nod my head.

"Of course I do. It's always on the first day of the country fair. I used to get jealous because Two-Bit would go with all of you guys and I had up stay home until he could take me the next day." I say before laughing at how pathetic it sounds.

"Well maybe you can come this year." Pony says and I feel my cheeks heat in blush. I thank the lucky stars that its dark out because blushing in front of him would be completely embarrassing.

"Maybe, if Two-Bit doesn't think I'm a tag-along." I say as we round the corner to Polly's street.

We then walk in silence and as we near Polly's house I notice the lights to the living room are on. "Guess your friends made it back ok."

"Yeah, thanks for getting me out of there and then walking me." I say and Ponyboy shrugs his shoulders.

"Not a big deal. I guess, I'll see you around Eleanor." He says and I nod my head.

"Bye Ponyboy." I say and he smiles a bit at me before turning away and walking back the way we came.

I walk up the porch quickly, rubbing my arms because the night air is getting to me. When I try to get inside the house the front door is locked and I roll my eyes, knocking. "Come on you guys it's freezing."

Emily and Polly don't open the door and I sigh moving over to the window and peeking inside. They're sitting on the living room floor painting each other's nails. In that moment they remind me of the innocent elementary school girls they were. I knock on the window and Polly's head snaps to look at me.

She gets up and pulls the window open. "Why are you here?" She asks and I make a face.

"We're having a sleepover." I say and Polly shakes her head.

"That was before you decided to run off into the night with Ponyboy. Did you forget I called dibs?" She asks and I can't help but laugh.

"Ponyboy was just getting me out so that my brother or the cops didn't catch me. Nothing even happened he just walked me here, besides you forgot all about him while you were chatting up Mark." I say and Polly's face gets real cool. It reminds me of her brother, who is like second in command for the Shepard gang. They're both terrifying when they want to be.

"I still called dibs." She says and I roll my eyes.

"You're mad at me for being with Ponyboy, not at the fact that I kind of left you guys there?" I ask and she nods her head.

"I told you I could take care of myself, so I'm not angry at that. I'm mad at you for not being a good friend." Polly says and I can't believe how stupid she is.

"You're being so ridiculous. Ponyboy isn't a piece of meat you can claim." I say and she shrugs her shoulders at me, eyes narrowing.

"I think you should leave. I don't have time for friends who stab me in the back." Polly says and my jaw drops a bit.

"Are you kidding me?" I ask and she shakes her head.

"Your crap is on the porch." Polly says before slamming the window shut and drawings the curtains.

"What a bitch." I mumble before picking up my duffel bag and starting to walk home.

As I start to walk I suddenly wish my brother would pull around the corner on Steve's car, sure I'd be in heaps of trouble but at least I'd be warm, safe, and on my way home to my bed. I wish I just let Two-Bit catch me at the party, then I wouldn't had left with Ponyboy and Polly would still want to be my friend. I wish I hadn't even gone to the party in the first place, but you can't turn back time and now I was stuck walking the blocks back to my house on my own. Perhaps I could see if my brother is at the Curtis place, surely he'd walk me home if he isn't drunk.

Walking around in the dark alone is a lot scarier than when I was walking with Ponyboy. I catch up to him after a block. He's a slow walker, but maybe then again I'm probably just rushing because I'm scared.

"Hey Ponyboy!" I yell and he turns. He stops when he realizes that it's me and waits for me to catch up to him. I hear a noise in a side alley and practically run to him.

"You ok?" He asks looking over me to make sure nothing followed that noise. "Why aren't you at Polly's?"

"She's mad and won't let me stay at the house." I say, not giving him details because I don't want to tell him that she's mad because of him.

"You want me to take you home?" He asks and I lick my lips.

"I actually wanted to see if my brother was at your house." i say and he rolls his eyes at me.

"I'll just take you home, no use getting in trouble now. Two-Bit's provably passed out anyways." Pony says and i sigh a bit, "You want me to take you home?" He asks again and i nod slowly.

"If you don't mind walking with me Ponyboy." I say before looking down at my shoes, "Sorry if I'm such a bother."

"Shoot kid, this is the most fun I've had all night." He says before nudging me with his elbow in a very brother like fashion.

"I don't appreciate the sarcasm." I say and he smiles teasingly at me, "I get enough of it from my brother."

"Really? I hear it's you that has a knack for sarcastic remarks." Pony says with a grin as he looks over his shoulder towards me.

He walks with larger strides than I do and walks in front of me, not bothering to slow down so that I can walk with him.

"You cold Eleanor?" Pony says before looking over at my small trembling figure. He's pretty tall like his brother.

"A bit." I say before shivering violently again. He smirks and shakes his head.

"I'll grab a sweatshirt for you when we pass my house." Pony says and I smile gratefully up at him.

"Thanks Ponyboy." I say before and smiles crookedly at me.

"I think your the only other person other than the gang that still calls me Ponyboy." He says and I shrug my shoulders.

"I mean that is your name, but I can call you Curtis if you'd like." I say and he shakes his head.

"That's ok." He says before we grow silent again and continue to walk to his house.

When we arrive I'm genuinely surprised when I don't see Steve's car parked anywhere out front. "Your brother could still be passed out on the couch, wait here." Pony whispers before leaving me at the bottom of the steps that lead to his porch and ducking inside the house.

I'm only outside for about a minute when Pony comes back with a sweatshirt and shakes his head as he tosses it to me. "He's dead asleep on the couch."

I sigh and pull the sweatshirt over my head. It's an old track and girls sweatshirt from the high school, it's old, faded, and as soft as a worn out blanket that's been washed a bunch of times. It also smells like Ponyboy, which is a mix of hair grease, cologne, and mint gum.

The sweatshirt is warm and I'm far more comfortable in it then I should be. I yawn and Pony smirks. "Alright kid, let get you home."

"I'm not a kid." I say and he chuckles, "I'm not."

"No," his eyes then trail up my body for a split second, "no, you're definitely not a kid anymore."

I blush and look away from him, tucking a loose piece of my hair behind my ear and following behind him in the dark back to my house.

Since my mom locks the front door at night and I forgot my key I have to sneak in through my bedroom window. Pony is able to get the window up from the outside and just like he did earlier at the party he boosts me inside the house like he had over the fence. "You ok now? I'm not going to find you roaming around int he streets again tonight?"

"No, I think I've done enough roaming for a night." I say and he smirks at me.

"Goodnight Eleanor." He says before backing up a few steps and then turning away.

"Hey Pony, your sweatshirt." I say as I start to take it off and he turns back to face me shaking his head.

"Give it to me later." He says, "I'll see you around kid."

"Yeah, sure. Bye Ponyboy." I say as I watch him walk back down the street.

I flop onto my bed, not bothering to comb out my hair or wash off my makeup, it's three in the morning and I'm tired as hell.

I sleep in Pony's sweatshirt that night, debating in my sleepy mind if I'll ever give it back to him.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I only edited this like once because I'm freaking tired and honestly don't feel like reading over this. Happy Reading and sorry for the mistakes.

* * *

I'm woken up the next morning by loud snapping. I open one eye and find my mother standing my doorway with her arms crossed and chewing hard on a piece of gum.

"Morning." I mumble before flipping over in my bed and snuggling into my pillow. She snaps her gum again and again until I finally sit up and look at her, "What mama?"

"What are you doing home?" She asks and I yawn staring off into the space for a split second because I have no idea what she's talking about. "You're supposed to be at Polly's."

My eyes widen in realization and I shrug my shoulders. "We got into a fight so I came home."

"Who's sweatshirt is that?" My mom asks and I look down at the faded sweatshirt that Ponyboy gave me last night. I fiddle with the stray string on the bottom and tell her, "It's the youngest Curtis brother's."

"When did you see him?" My mom asks and I rub my eyes, leaning back against the pillows.

"He was walking home from a party and I ran into him on the street. He walked me home since it was so late." I say and my mama nods her head with a small smile.

"He's always been such a sweet boy." My mom says and I nod my head in agreement, after a few passing seconds she says, "Well, time to get up."

"Why?" I groan and my mom smiles, walking into my room and pulling open the shades. "The light burns!" I say before pulling all of the blankets up over my head.

"Do not start acting like your brother. I do not need you wise-cracking all the time, now get up." My mom scolds before pulling my blankets down.

"Why do I have to get up? You let Two-Bit sleep in until noon." I say and my mother crosses her arms over her chest and cocks a brow. It's not a humorous look like my brother does but it's a scolding look, very serious and letting me know that I shouldn't be acting the way I am.

"Well just so you know Eleanor it's half past noon and I need you to run errands for me." My mom says and I sit up, looking at the clock on my nightstand because I don't believe her.

It really is 12:30 and I can't believe I've slept away half the day. "What kinds of errands?" I ask skeptically and my mother shakes her head.

She starts to walk out the door and says, "Does it matter? You're going to have to do them anyways." My mom then closes the door with a flick of her wrist.

I fall back on my bed and cover my eyes. "I'm so tired." I say to myself and my mom raps on the door.

"You better be getting ready Eleanor!" My mom says and I want to scream.

"I am." I mutter before pulling off Ponyboy's sweatshirt and heading towards my closet.

When I'm finally presentable for the outside world and have food in my stomach I head into the garage and find my mom doing laundry. "It's already one o'clock, you're wasting time."

"Dear lord mama. If you wanted the errands done earlier why didn't you get Two to do them?" I ask and my mom whips me with a wet towel.

"Watch your mouth. Anyways, you know how hard it is to find your brother the night after he goes to a party, besides you need to pull your weight around here missy." My mom says and I roll my eyes. "I swear if you don't watch that attitude of yours-"

"Alright, alright." I say and she tosses a few things into a laundry basket to take out to the clothesline. "Where do I need to go?"

"You need to pick up some things from the grocers, head down to the DX and make a payment for Steve since he fixed my car awhile back but I couldn't pay the entire bill at that moment, then I need you to find your brother and the two of you need to come back here before dinner because grandma's coming over." I make a face and my mom smiles a bit.

"Why is grandma coming over?" I ask and my mom shrugs her shoulders.

"You know she's always gotta try and get you to go to that summer camp." My mom answers and I cringe a bit.

"You mean church camp." I correct her and my mom shakes her head.

"Yes the very same camp your best friend goes to every summer." My mom says, "There's nothing wrong with church."

"Never said there was, it's just not for me." I say before swiping the grocery list and money off the shelf on the garage and heading for my bike.

"Drop that money off to Steve first, I don't want you to lose it!" My mom calls after me as I take off down the driveway.

As I'm riding my bike slowly down the city streets of Tulsa and not really paying attention to what or who is around me, I suddenly find myself begging pushed over and landing hard on the sidewalk. I look up and see two boys, Paul and Christopher, both of them my age and both of them part of Tim Shepard's gang. I scramble to my feet, ignoring the throbbing pain in my arm. Paul grabs me forcefully and I whimper in pain.

"Where's your brother?" Christopher asks and I cringe away from him.

"I don't know." I mumble as I try to look everywhere but meet Paul's eyes as his grip tightens on my arm.

"You tell him that he has until the end of the month before Shepard starts looking for him personally." Paul says extremely close to my face and I try to shove him off me.

Christopher laughs and shoves me back onto the ground. I reach out to catch myself and land hard on my wrist causing my eyes to tear up in pain. "Remember one month." He then flips open his switchblade and slashes my tire on my bike.

The laugh and take off down the street like nothing had even happened. I cradle my wrist in my hand and cringe at how tender it is. I slowly get back to my feet and pick up my bike, my hands patting my front pocket of my shorts to make sure that I still have the money my mom gave me.

I push my bike down the street trying not to cry. I've never been jumped before and I know that it wasn't as bad as it could be but it still scares me something awful. I wish Two-Bit would show up in his car and pick me up, but I really had no idea where he was at the moment because he usually came home the day after he went out to party. It's strange for Two-Bit to not be back my mid-afternoon.

It's also weird for Tim Shepard and his gang to be looking for my brother. I didn't even think Two and his friends really associated with the Shepard gang since Dallas died. I swallow thinking about all the things Tim Shepard could do to my brother, especially if Two did something to piss him off. I bite my lip hard and walk through the parking lot to the garage at the DX.

"Well look what we've got here." Soda says as I walk into the garage. I set my bike against the wall and smile halfheartedly at him. He didn't work at the DX anymore since he was injured in Vietnam, but he still liked to hang out here with Steve.

The two of them were trying to open a garage together and I'm

"Have you seen Two?" I ask and he shakes his head, leaning his cane against the workbench and then sitting on the stool.

"No, sorry Little-Bit." Soda says before flicking something at Steve, "You ok kid?"

"I fell off my bike." I say before rubbing my wrist a bit, "No big deal."

"How'd you fall?" Steve asks as he eyes my bike.

"I hit a stick, it got stuck in my wheel." I say and Steve bends over pulling back the flap in my tire that was slashed.

"Must have been some stick." He says and I sit on a stool next to Soda, pulling the money out of my pocket and handing it to him. "Thanks kid, so uh- you gonna tell us what really happened."

I look down at my shoes and sigh, "Couple of members from the Shepard Gang, Paul and Christopher, they um- stopped me."

"For what?" Soda asks and I bite my lip hard.

"They were looking for my brother, said he had a month before Tim started to look for him himself." I say and Soda and Steve exchange a look. "Why is Shepard looking for my brother?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure it's nothing big." Soda says before nudging me with his elbow. I still give him a worried look and he smiles reassuringly. "What about you kid? You ok?"

"My wrist hurts, they pushed me down." I say and Steve catches my arm.

"Looks like they grabbed you pretty hard too." He says as his eyes study the bruises Paul's fingers left.

"I'm fine." I say and Steve tosses a rag over his shoulder.

"I get off work in a few hours, hang around here and I'll take you home." Steve says and I shake my head.

"I can't I got to go to the store and find my brother before dinner." I say and Steve crosses his arms over his chest, looking at Soda.

The two seem to be able to read each other's minds because Soda nods and gets up heading for the phone. "I'll have Pony come get you in his car, he'll take you wherever you need to go."

"He already babysat me last night, he probably thinks I'm an annoying kid." Steve and Soda exchange another glance, this time it seems to be funny. I ignore it though because they're most likely laughing at me and say,"I'll be fine guys, really."

Soda stares at me and I stare back, cocking my brow up at him and tilting my head. He smiles crazily and I feel like for once he isn't looking at me like I'm his buddies younger sister, but actually looking at me like I'm Eleanor Matthews, an actual person and not an annoying little sister.

"I'm still gonna call Ponyboy." Soda says and I roll my eyes. "Sorry Little-Bit, but Two would do the same thing if the roles were reversed."

"Besides, Pony's not going to mind." Steve says and I give him a strange look before grabbing a Pepsi out of their ice chest they keep in here.

I don't say anything to him but sip on my Pepsi and listen to Soda talk on the phone to his younger brother. My wrist is throbbing and I felt strange sitting their in the garage of the DX with Soda and Steve. It was what I dreamed about, hanging out with my brothers friends. They still acted like I was a little girl though and maybe I am in a way, just a little girl to them because I'm always going to be significantly younger than all of them, I'm always going to be the only girl and I'm always going to be Two-Bit Matthews little sister. Maybe that's not such a bad thing like how I thought it was.

I tuck a loose piece of hair behind my ear and stare angrily at my bike. How was I supposed to get anywhere this summer if my bike is broken. "Don't worry Eleanor, I'll find a new tire for it." Steve says and I smile at him.

"Thanks." I say and he nods his head bending back over the car.

"See," Soda says quietly at me and I look at him, "we do care about you."

It doesn't take long for Ponyboy to get here and when he does I can't help but fix my hair and then become aware of the ridiculous amount of wrinkles in my t-shirt. When he walks in I expect him to look annoyed but instead he seems glad to be there.

"Long time no see, Eleanor." He says with a grin that I return.

"Hey Pony." I say and he sits next to his brother. The two of them exchange a few quick words and laugh. You can see how close the two of them really are.

"You ready to go Eleanor?" Pony asks and I nod my head, getting up from my stool and flinching from the pressure I just put on my wrist.

We say our goodbyes and I follow Pony out to his car. It's old and used and dented in places but it's still his car and I can tell that he's proud that even has a car of his own. "So where are we going?"

"The market and then I've got to find my brother." I say and Pony cocks a brow at me.

"He's at Mark and Bryan's." pony says and I look at him curiously, "I was helping them clean up from the party, Two-Bit crashed there last night."

"Oh." I say and Pony starts his car, it sputters for a few moments before it starts up with a rather loud growl from the engine. "What's he doing hanging out with them?"

"Don't know, him and Mark have been buddying around lately." Pony says and I look over at him, rubbing my wrist and biting my lip.

"Paul and Christopher, two of Tim Shepard's boys, jumped me today." I say and Pony's grip on the steering wheel tightens a bit.

"Did they hurt you?" He asks and I shake my head.

"Not too bad, I tweaked my wrist and they slashed the tires on my bike but I'm fine and Steve said he'd get me a new tire." I say and Ponyboy nods his head, "But that's not why I brought that up."

"Well why did you bring it up?" He asks and I play with the hem of my shirt before answering.

"Shepard's looking for my brother or will be and I can't help but think that Two-Bit might be in trouble. I know he likes to gamble and I know that if he really needed to he would borrow money from Tim." I say and Pony stays silent for a few minutes.

"I think that you should just ask Two-Bit about it. I mean if Shepard is serious enough about this to have his idiots jump you then Two-Bit probably did something stupid." Pony says and I cross my arms over my chest suddenly feeling way too nervous about this.

When I don't say anything Pony looks at me and smiles, "I'll stick around if you want when you ask him."

"Can you just ask him?" I ask and Pony shakes his head.

"He's not my brother." Pony says before pulling into the parking lot of the market.

It's kind of too easy being around Ponyboy. We've never actually been friends but we could talk like we've been friends for a long time. He understood the things I would say and I would understand the things he would.

When he drives me to Mark and Bryan's house I'm surprised by how incredibly comfortable I am with him and how comfortable he seems to be with me. He looks over at me and smiles before stopping in front of the house and climbing out of the car.

He leads up the steps to the house and opens the door, letting me in first. Inside I find the house incredibly clean for there just being a party here last night. Mark is sitting at the dining room table counting out some cash and when he sees me he jumps.

Mark's golden eyes trail up my body for a split second and I'm surprised at how easily he checks me out right in front of me and my brother who's walking out of the kitchen with a beer in his hand.

"Ponyboy why'd you bring her here?" Two-Bit asks and I cringe, stepping backwards and stumbling a bit over my own feet. My brother looks angry and hung over and there's something wrong with his eyes, they're bloodshot and empty.

"I-I, mom wants you home by dinner and I was worried because no one seemed to know where you were." I say quickly and Two-Bit sits down taking some of the money from Mark, he's not event string to me.

I take a deep breath and glance at Ponyboy, "Two-Bit." Pony says and my brother looks up, lifting his brows up and waiting. "Eleanor's talking to you."

"Yeah, she's always talking." Two-Bit says before taking a swig of his beer and tucking the money in his pocket, "So what's the drama today Elle?"

"Two of Shepard's boys jumped me because of you. They wanted me to pass on the message that you have a month before Tim starts looking for you himself." I say and Two-Bit looks down for a few seconds before meeting my eyes again.

"Are you ok?" He asks and I nod my head.

"Why is Shepard looking for you?" I ask and Two-Bit stands.

"I don't think that's really any of your business Eleanor." He says before looking at Ponyboy, "Take her home would you, and don't bring her here again."

My chin quivers and I stomp out if the house before the tears can slip down my cheeks. In my head I can hear my brother saying, "There goes Eleanor, being a cry baby again."

I open up the door to Pony's car and wait for him to take me home. He appears a few seconds later, silent and gripping the steering wheel. He drives slowly home and I play with the ends of my hair, keeping the tears at bay. Two-Bit's never talked to me like that, never acted like I was the biggest nuisance in the world, even when I was being a nuisance he's never spoken to me like that.

"Thanks for the ride Ponyboy." I say when he pulls up in front of my house.

"Yeah." He says as he climbs out to help me carry my groceries up to the porch, "I'll try and talk to Two-Bit when he's not around Mark."

"I don't think it's going to make a difference." I say and Pony looks down.

We stay silent for a few minutes and I say, "Do you want your sweatshirt back?"

"No that's alright. I've got to go, but if you need anything Eleanor you know the gang's here right?" Pony says and I nod my head.

"Yeah I know." I say and Ponyboy nods his head scuffing his shoe on the porch.

"Bye." He says awkwardly and I laugh at him as he starts to walk back down the porch, he turns when he reaches his car and says. "Since your bike is out if commission if you need a ride anywhere you can call me." He says and I smile, feeling my cheeks blush.

"I might just take you up on that offer." I say and he smiles.

"Wouldn't have offered it if I didn't want you to." Pony says before climbing into his car, nodding a final goodbye to me and then driving away.


	5. Chapter 5

When I walk inside my mother is in the living room folding clothes. She lifts a brow at me and I smile at her, piling all of the groceries into my arms so that I only need to make one trip into the kitchen.

"Why did Ponyboy drop you off?" My mom calls after me and I set the groceries down, cringing from the weight on my wrist. "Where's your bike?"

"Back at the DX, the tire popped so Steve said he would fix it for me." I answer as I grab a Pepsi from the ice box and walk back into the living room.

"They're all such sweet boys." My mom says warmly before placing a hand on my shoulder. "Are you alright Eleanor?"

"My wrist hurts from when I fell." I say and my mom frowns taking it gently into her hand.

"There's something else bothering you. You're like a little open book." Mom says and I shake my head, forcing the most convincing smile I can manage onto my face.

"No mom, nothing's wrong." Except for the fact that there's something wrong with Two-Bit, but I don't say that, instead I say, "I don't think Two-Bit is going to be home for dinner."

"I swear, that boy." My mom says, completely forgetting about me and starting to put away the groceries, "You know where he is?"

"Yeah mama." I murmur and she looks up at me, "Come on he's twenty three if he doesn't want to come to dinner he doesn't have to."

My mom just smiles a bit at me and shakes her head. I watch her make dinner and the two of us talk about small things like books and what I plan on doing during the summer.

"You know grandma's going to ask you to go to the church camp and I know it's going to be annoying but try not to snap at her." My mom says as she hands me a bowl of salad to place on the table.

"I'll try not to mom but she gets so pushy sometimes." I say and my mom sighs, tucking one of my loose hairs behind my ears.

"I know baby girl but you just got to grit your teeth and keep your cool." My mom says before nudging me towards the dining room.

I set the salad up on the table and fix the napkins and plates. I decide not to set up a spot for Two-Bit and feel an odd twist in my stomach. I can't forget his face, his eyes. I can't forget how angry he was at me, how easily he pushed me away.

The distinct sound of my grandmother's car pulls up in front of the house and I feel my mood decline even more. Dinner is going to be absolutely terrible tonight without Two-Bit's wise cracks to even out my grandmother's judgements. I try to seem cheery, but all I really want to do is go sit in the vacant lot and watch the stars.

My grandmother smells like cheap perfume and cigarette smoke. Her hair is always in a high bun, kind of like a beehive and her makeup is painted thickly onto her wrinkled skin. I love my grandmother dearly, but when I was a little girl she terrified me. She still kind of does now, not because of her looks but because of her words. I just can't seem to do anything right in my grandmothers eyes, to her I'm just my fathers child and I think that's what hurts the most.

"Eleanor don't slouch." Is the first thing my grandmother says when she walks in through the front door. Instinctively I look towards the couch where Two-Bit should be sitting. I frown and straighten out my back, I'm on my own tonight.

"Hello grandmother." I say as I walk over to her. My mom is hanging up her coat and purse and I hug the elderly woman gently. She pulls away from me and lifts a brow as she checks out my attire.

"Your shirt is wrinkled and is that grease?" My grandmother asks and I look down, noticing the grease stains that I must have picked up from the DX. I smooth out my shirt in an attempt to fix the wrinkles, "don't try to fix it, just change your shirt."

I nod my head stiffly, glancing at my mom who is trying to ignore the entire exchange. I push my hair back and close my bedroom door softly, my shirt isn't even really that wrinkled but I change it anyway. I choose a soft cotton white shirt and toss my other on into the hamper.

There's a soft tapping on my window and I freeze looking at the closed blinds. No one has ever knocked on my window and I stare for a few moments, listening as the knocking intensifies. I finally work up my courage to walk to window and pull back the blinds.

"Christ, Ponyboy." I whisper as I pull the window up, "You scared me half to death."

"Sorry, but Two-Bit's heading over to Shepard's tonight." Ponyboy says and I suddenly become aware of how deep his voice is. I lunge and cover his mouth with my hands.

"My grandmother's here and she'll hate me even more is she knows there's a boy hanging outside my window." I whisper before removing my hand from covering his mouth.

"Sorry." He whispers before smiling crookedly, "How could someone hate you?"

"It's easier than it seems." I answer quietly and he leans against the windowsill, "So what's up with Two-Bit?"

"He's heading up to Shepard's with Mark tonight. Mark let it slip when I went back to the house after dropping you off." Ponyboy says and I like my lips, "They had a ton of money on the table, so maybe Two-Bit did take his gambling a little too far this time."

"Will you take me to Shepard's tonight?" I ask and Ponyboy lifts a brow.

"No, no way in hell. Two-Bit will murder me for taking you fifty feet of the place and then probably murder me again for sneaking around in his business." Ponyboy says and I smile a bit.

"You can't murder someone twice." I whisper and Ponyboy rolls his eyes.

"You know what I mean." He says and I nod my head.

"But what if Shepard hurts him." I say and Ponyboy tilts his, "I can't just let him go off alone."

"It's not your problem though, whatever mess he got himself into doesn't concern you. If anything you should stay far from it." Ponyboy says and I cross my arms over my chest. "I know he didn't show it today, but I know for a fact that you're the only thing that Two-Bit actually cares about and he wouldn't want you at Shepard's for any reason, ever."

"So you're telling me that if it was Darry or Soda walking into Shepard's house tonight with Mark as their only ally you wouldn't go to Shepard's?" I ask and Ponyboy smile's a tad bit.

"Nope, I would listen to the friend that's telling me not to go because deep down I know they're right." He answers and I glare at him.

"You're a liar." I say and he shrugs his shoulders.

"Maybe so, but it really doesn't matter because you have no way of getting to Shepard's anyway." Ponyboy says and I sigh, slouching my shoulders in defeat.

"Fine, thanks for the heads up." I say and Ponyboy rolls his eyes.

"Don't be mad." He says and I smile a bit.

"I'm not." I answer and he smiles crookedly at me.

"What are you doing tonight?" He asks and I feel my cheeks tinge in blush.

"Being judged by my grandma over dinner, but later I was going to sneak out to the vacant lot and watch the stars." I say and Ponyboy lifts a brow.

"Maybe I'll see you out there." Pony says before drumming on the windowsill and saying goodbye.

I swoon for a moment and lick my lips, tucking a loose piece of hair behind my ear and then turning to head back into the kitchen where I can hear my mom arguing with my grandmother.

"You just can't talk to her like that Ma, she's sixteen just a teenager. She doesn't need to be reprimanded like a child or treated like an adult." My mom says and I pause in the hallway to listen.

"I just don't want her to end up like-"

"Like me?" My mom asks and I hear my grandmother sigh. "I think I'm doing damn well taking care of two children as a single parent, and if you haven't realized this, Eleanor isn't me. She's brilliant and if I know one thing, it's that my girl is going somewhere. You won't see her on this side of Tulsa when she's my age."

"I'm just saying she needs someone to guide her in the right direction." My grandmother pauses takes a deep and continues, "Let her move to Texas with me to your sisters."

"No, no way you are not taking my child. The fact that you would even ask that-"

"Alright, alright." My grandmother says and before she can say anything else about me I walk into the kitchen and smooth out my shirt. When my grandmother's eyes land on me she nods her head, "Better dear."

I smile a bit and glance at my mother who looks so upset. I smile at her and she smiles back. I don't think I could ever leave here. I would never want to.

The dinner passes slowly and once my grandmother finally leaves and I help my mother with the dishes I find myself sitting on the edge of the couch, glancing at the clock and tapping my foot, waiting for my mom to go to bed. "You know the things Grandmother says you shouldn't take to heart."

"I'm not." I answer before pulling my eyes away from the clock to look at my mom. In this lighting she looks so tired, run down, and older than what she is. The idea makes me sad and I can't help but curl up next to her, placing my head in her lap.

She runs her hands gently through my hair and says, "I'm sorry I couldn't give you and Two-Bit more."

"You gave us everything we could ever need mom." I say and she continues to brush my hair back. "And ending up like you wouldn't be a bad thing."

My mom sniffles and I sit up to see the tears that are in her eyes. "Thanks for not sending me to Texas." I say and she laughs, pulling me into a hug.

"I love you Eleanor." She whispers and I smile.

"I love you too Mama." I reply and she squeezes before pulling away.

"So, when is Ponyboy expecting you?" She asks and I try not to seemed surprised.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I answer and my mom laughs.

"I was sixteen once too and I just so happened to walk past your bedroom door at a very interesting time." My mom says and I blush a deep red.

"Um, well I told him I'd meet him in the vacant lot maybe." I say and my mom lifts her brow.

"Make sure you're back inside by eleven thirty." My mom says before getting up and I smile.

"Twelve." I counter and my mom pauses at the door frame.

"Eleven forty-five and not a second more." My mom replies before disappearing down the hallway and going into her room.

I smile, running off to my room and grabbing Pony's sweatshirt off my chair. I could use the front door, but I liked to sneak out my window. I take a deep breath and try to contain my excitement, crossing my fingers and hoping that Ponyboy will be at the lot waiting for me.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I don't really like this chapter but I wanted to post something.

* * *

The summer night has cooled down a lot and I pull Ponyboy's sweatshirt over my head. I try to focus on the lot and try to focus on the face that I can see Ponyboy sitting there on top of the old abandoned car watching the car. In the dark of the night with only the moon to give us light, the burning embers in his cigarette seems to eliminated even more. I try to focus on all of that, all the details of this night, but I can't because across town Two-Bit's inside of Tim Shepard's house, probably without an ally, facing the problem he got himself into.

I pause and take a few deep breathes. I focus on Ponyboy again and try to imagine what he's thinking about. Maybe he's thinking about me or perhaps he's thinking about Two-Bit too, but since this is Ponyboy I bet he's thinking about the future. I bet his mind is on college, after all he is the first in his family and group of friends to go. I could only imagine how proud they all are of him.

"You just going to stand there all night?" Ponyboy calls and I jump, startled because I had been so consumed in my thoughts that I didn't know how long he caught me standing there.

I smile sheepishly and walk over to the abandoned car. He helps me up onto the hood and I sit next to him, he tugs on the drawstring of the sweatshirt and lifts a brow. "This is mine."

"No, it's not." I say and Ponyboy smirks at me.

"I didn't realize you ran track and field." He says before pulling the drawstring so that they become uneven.

"Who's to say I just didn't steal it? I may have sticky fingers like Two." I say before wiggling my hand in front of his face.

He catches my hand and I feel my face flush in heat. "Exactly, you stole it from me." He says before letting my hand drop gently.

"Do you want it back?" I ask and Ponyboy smiles softly.

"Not yet."

I feel the butterflies tickle my insides and the only thing I can manage to do is lean back against the car and look up towards the stars. There's this sudden longing in me and for some reason I picture Johnny and I picture a fourteen year old Ponyboy, sitting in the lot together watching the stars and talking like friends do. I glance at Ponyboy and wonder how long it took him to come back to the lot. This was Johnny's space, everyone knew that and it was hard for me not to sit here sometimes and not think about him, so I could only imagine how it is for Ponyboy.

We sit in silence for awhile. His cigarette smoke swirling around us. "Where are you going to school?" I ask and Pony smashes his cigarette on the car before flicking it off into the dirt.

"Chicago." He says slowly and I look over at him, waiting for him to smile and say just kidding but he doesn't he's dead serious.

"You're going to Illinois?" I ask and he nods his head. "Why go out of state?"

"I've got to get out of here sometime, might as well be now." He answers and I furrow my brows together and look back up to the stars.

It was hard to wrap my head around this because my brother's friends are the only thing that's ever been constant in my life. So it's strange to realize that as I grow up, they have to grow up too. I couldn't imagine a Tulsa without any of them, but yet they were leaving the city that all of us have called home for years.

"Are you scared?" I ask and he shakes his head.

"I'm excited, I finally get to go to a place where people don't know Ponyboy Curtis and the trouble he got into. I can be anything, I don't even have to go by Ponyboy anymore. I'm going to go by my middle name, grow up I guess." He explains and I feel my stomach lurch.

"So should I start calling you Michael?" I ask and Ponyboy smiles at me.

"No, I'm always going to be Ponyboy here." He says and then adds, "So I'm still just Pony to you."

I smile a bit even though I'm still a bit uneasy about him leaving. A summer with him wasn't going to be long enough.

"You look sad." Pony points out and I chip some of the rust away from the old car.

"I'm worried about Two." I answer because I am and I didn't want admit to Pony that i was going to miss him when he had to leave. Ponyboy leans back on the car and lights up another cigarette. He blows a smoke ring up into the night sky and I watch it swirl around until disappearing into thin air.

"Here." He says handing me the cigarette and I take it with a shaky hand.

"Don't tell my brother." I say before taking a long drag on the cancer stick. He smirks as he watches the smoke leave my mouth. I hand him back the cigarette and he flicks away some of the ashes.

"You shouldn't be worried about Two-Bit, he's pretty tough." Pony say reassuringly and I chew on my bottom lip.

"Yeah, but so his Tim Shepard and the only person that I can recall beating him in a fight is Dallas Winston, and it's not like he's around to do that." I say and Ponyboy's face twists a bit and I wish I hadn't brought up Dallas Winston.

"Yeah, I guess no one can fight like Dally huh?" Pony says after awhile and I smile a bit nodding my head in agreement.

Ponyboy and I sit on the car for a few hours, talking about nothing important. He makes me laugh and forget about my brother and his problems. I'm focused on what he has to say and he listens to me intently. I've never had somebody listen so intently to what I have to say, it's strange and amazing at the same time.

When it's time for me to go home Ponyboy walks with me. He stands close and our hands brush together for a brief moment, the touch frightens me and I fold my arms over my chest, regretting my decision because what if he had wanted to hold my hand?

Ponyboy walks me all the way up to my porch. He leans against the side if my house while I sneak in through the window. When I'm safely tucked away inside, he leans against my window frame and smiles. "Is that a Beatles album?"

"Shut up." I say and he laughs, reaching for it since my desk is so loves to my window.

I slap his hand away and he smiles looking up at me, lifting a brow up. "Don't you think you should be getting home?"

"Yeah, I should." Ponyboy says before smiling a bit bigger, "I'll call you tomorrow ok." He says before tapping his hands on my nightstand and winking goodbye.

The morning is slow as I wait for Two-Bit to get home. It's almost early afternoon by the time he stumbles through the door with a wife smile on his face.

"Hey little sis!" He says and I give him a strange look. "What's up?"

"So your being nice to me now?" I ask and Two-Bit's smile falters a bit.

"Look I'm sorry about that. I was under a lot of stress and-"

I cut him off and say, "Don't worry about it Two."

He grins again and steals a piece of toast off my plate. "Mark's gonna come over." He says and I frown, looking down at my plate.

"Cool. I'm going to run down to the DX and pick up my bike." I say standing up and pulling my hair back into a bun.

"Why is your bike at the DX?" He asks and I make a face at him.

"Some of Shepard's boys thought they would ruffle my feathers." I say, shrugging my shoulders and heading towards the door.

"What do you mean?" He asks and I shrug my shoulders.

"They just slashed the tires on my bike." I answer and Two-Bit points at my wrist.

"Did they hurt you?" He asks and I nod my head slowly.

"It's not a big deal Two, but whatever problems your having with Shepard please be careful and please try to keep me out of it." I say and Two hugs me tightly.

"Always will little sis." He says before walking me out the door, "Where are you going after?"

"Mindy's house. She's leaving for church camp and I promised I would help her pack, if I get a phone call could you leave a message?"

"Will do, see you later." He calls and I wave towards him, running down the porch steps and hurrying towards the DX.

The loud roar if the T-Burd behind me terrifies me to no end. I know it's a Shepard and the fact that their trailing me right now makes me want to throw up because it's so obvious that they're keeping tabs on me and on Two-Bit. It's like Shepard wants me to be scared to go outside.

I can see the DX in the distance and I pick up speed. Steve's car is in the parking lot and I relax a bit, knowing that there's going to be somebody that I know there.

I wait at the crosswalk to go across the street. The T-Bird passes me and Curly Shepard, Paul, and Christopher smile wickedly as they drive slowly down the street and pull into the DX. I begin to sweat and when I'm able to cross the street I take off in a sprint towards the DX.

Sodapop, Steve, Ponyboy, and Bryan are all standing coolly watching the T-Bird. Steve spots me first and he walks out of the garage, his shoulders back and stalks right past the Shepard boys in the car.

"Those the guys?" Steve asks and u make eye contact with Christopher who is sitting in the back seat.

"Just the two that aren't Curly." I answer and Steve stalks over to the car. I hurry into the garage and Ponyboy, puts a hand on my shoulder before giving me a reassuring smile.

"Look Shepard," I hear Steve growl and Bryan and Ponyboy walk out to back him up just in case. I look at Sodapop wide eyed and he winks at me, not worried that a fight might break out in the parking lot. "If I ever find you trailing her again I'll personally break your legs."

Steve begins to stalk back towards us and when he turns around back to face the Shepard boys, "And you can tell your brother that."

Curly flips Steve off but he drives away. Steve looks back at us and grins. I shake my head and feel woozy.

"You probably made it worse." I say panicked and Steve shakes his head.

"If Two-Bit and Mark aren't going aren't going to handle this, I sure as hell am." Steve says before pointing at me, "You tell me if they mess with you."

I nod my head and look at my bike. "Can I have my bike back? It's my only mode of transportation."

"Well it's fixed but I don't think you should be riding around yourself." Steve says and I shrug my shoulders.

"It's my only mode of transportation." I say and Steve sighs.

I glance at Ponyboy and realize he's wearing a DX shirt. "I didn't know you worked here Pony."

"Only part time for the this summer. I'm taking Soda's spot until he can work again." Pony says as he puts a heavy hand on his brothers shoulder.

"Oh," I say and I look back at my bike, "I'll see you guys later ok."

They say goodbye but u know all of them are watching me closely until I disappear down the street.


	7. Chapter 7

"How am I supposed to live an entire summer without you?" I ask as Mindy hands her duffel bag to the bus driver. She smiles at me and then looks at her family standing behind her.

Mindy was attending her church summer camp and even though she went every summer. I felt like I needed her more than I ever have. Who was going to keep me same while Two-Bit was debt to Tim Shepard and who was going to be there to help me with Ponyboy and whatever was growing between us.

"You'll be fine. Trust me." Mindy says and I hug her tightly.

"Write me." I say and Mindy winks.

"Of course." She says and her already large smile grows even more, "Looks like your ride is here."

I turn and find Ponyboy's car, rumbling off in a parking spot. Pony lifts his hand in a small wave and I return it, turning back towards Mindy who is already pushing me towards the truck. "Go! I expect a letter too!"

I laugh and hug my best friend tightly again, "Bye Mindy." I then turn and walk quickly to the truck that's waiting for me.

"Hi." I say as I climb into the truck and Ponyboy smiles.

"Hi, you hungry?" He asks and I nod my head, rolling down the window to let in the hot summer air.

"How did you know where I was?" I ask him, and Pony casually rests his arm along the back of my seat.

"Uhh, your mom. I stopped by your house to see Two-Bit and she asked if I could pick you up." Pony say, looking over at me for a brief moment and then back towards the road.

"And where was my brother?" I ask, and Pony licks his lips.

"Off with Mark." He answers and I sigh, rubbing my forehead. "Hey." Ponyboy says gently and I look over at him, "Your brother will be fine, he always is."

"I think your the best person to know Pony." I say as he pulls into the parking lot at Jay's.

"Know what?" He asks and I smile weakly.

"That everyone's luck runs out." I say before climbing out of the truck and heading into the diner.

Seated right there in the first booth are Emily, Polly, and Angela Shepard. "Well, well, well, would you look who it is." Polly says and I glare at her as coolly as she glares at me."

"Hi girls." I say and watch as Angela's eyes widen when she realizes who I'm here with. Pony stands next to me and I know he can sense my uneasiness because he brushes his shoulder against mine and leaves it there to calm me down.

"Hey there Curtis." Angela purrs and Pony tenses.

"Angela." Ponyboy says with a head nod and the girl smiles seductively at him, causing some anger to bubble inside me.

"Oh, call me Angel." She says as her eyelashes bat, "You two want to sit with us?" She asks and Pony looks at me.

He smirks for a brief moment before turning back to Angela and saying, "No, I think we'll pass. Come on El, there's a table over there."

I watch Angela's smirk slowly deflate and turn into a frown. I smile at her and follow Pony past their table but Angela grabs me. Pony stops but I smile at him and say, "I'll meet you there. Order me a Pepsi?"

"You got it." He says as he continues forward towards the table.

I turn back to Angela and she says, "What are you going to do when he gets bored of you?"

"I don't know, what are you going to do when you realize he'll never date you?" I ask and Angela sneers at me.

"You know I wouldn't be mouthing off if I were you Matthews. Wouldn't want something to happen to your boyfriend or even your brother." Angela says and I rip my arm from her grasp.

"Don't threaten me Shepard." I spat and she glares at me, "You don't scare me."

"I can and will kick your ass." Angela threatens again and I smile.

"Maybe so," I say as I look up at Ponyboy who's pretending to read a menu, but really watching us from his peripheral, "but I'll still have him. What will you have after you beat me up?" I ask leaving Angela speechless as I walk away.

Ponyboy smiles at me and lifts a brow as I sit down, "So you'll still have me huh?"

"Shut-up." I says and he smiles even more.

"It's ok, I mean it's a win for both of us." Pony says and I lift a brow at him, watching color flood his cheeks, "I'll have you too."

Our eyes meet and stay focused on each other for a few tense moments before I get embarrassed and look down at the menu. Pony chuckles and kicks me gently underneath the table, "You and your brother really have a way of pudding the Shepard's off, don't you?"

"It's a gift." I say and Pony chuckles again, sipping on his Pepsi before turning back to the menu.

~T~

"What's with you and Ponyboy?" Two-Bit asks after cornering me in the kitchen. His eyes are wild, but not in their natural Two-Bit way. They're wild in a way that make me nervous.

"We're friends." I say and Two-Bit stares at me, "What Two?"

"Do you like him?" My brother asks, and I sigh, looking out the window to the porch where Pony waits for me to return.

"Yeah Two-Bit, I like him a little." I say, waiting for my brother to tell me how I can't see him or getting an grey but he doesn't. Instead Two-Bit does something surprising, he smiles ghostly and nods his head.

"Good, Pony'll- Pony will be good for you." Two-Bit says before walking out of the house. I follow him but stop on the porch.

"Where are you going again?" I call to him and Two-Bit just waves.

"You two kid's have fun." He calls back before turning back around and continuing down the street. I watch him until he disappears.

"He's making me nervous." I say and Pony grabs my hand, pulling me to our porch swing. I sit closely to him and Pony puts his arm casually behind me again.

"I know, but I also know that Two-Bit will be ok. I have to believe he will." Pony says and I rest my head against his shoulder, watching the sky change from blue to orange to black.

Just as the stars begin to pierce the skies I turn to look at Pony. He's already watching me and when our eyes meet I try to turn away again. Pony grabs my face gently, he brushes how thumbs underneath my eyes and I feel my lips part.

"Can I kiss you?" He asks and I don't answer, instead I just close the distance between us and press my lips against his.


End file.
